Tag Archive for: recovery

The Power of Community in Recovery

/in /by

Community Begins with Rehabilitation at Fresh Start of California

Recovery requires strength and courage to walk away from the friends, community, and family that you have been around all of your life. It asks you to begin anew and create a new set of friends, a new life, and a new community. Walking away from the past leaves a void, one that creates an opportunity for a new, healthier, stable community.

The community found in a supportive family, sober friends, and rehabilitation mentors is powerful. It provides the platform for stability and confidence in sobriety. At Fresh Start of California, our team of Orange County recovery professionals works with you to create a tailor-made recovery program. We understand that each patient needs a different community in which to thrive.

If you are ready to live a new life, in sobriety, contact the team at Fresh Start of California. We are here for you 24/7.

The Opportunity in a Sober Community

Forming a community is a key component to a successful, long-term recovery from addiction. Although you have to detach from unhealthy, addiction-based relationships, recovery creates the opportunity for stronger relationships based on sobriety. This new community gives you the power to take on each new day knowing that you are supported by people who believe in you.

A recovery community provides an opportunity for:

  • Providing the “soul food” of giving back to those less fortunate. Helping those who are less fortunate has the power to warm the heart when you may be feeling weary.
  • Helping others who are new to recovery. As your time in sobriety passes, you can help others see the light that you once did not see. You may be the one person who can inspire change in a faltering addict.
  • Enjoying socializing again. You may feel very alone at the start of your recovery. Knowing that you have to leave old friends behind, or even family members may make socializing seem like a far-off dream. A sober community is a stable and safe place to spread your socializing wings again.
  • Developing a sense of purpose and belonging. You may find, once you uncover your true self from beneath addiction, that you have a purpose that makes you unique and amazing. Belonging to a community that has a spirit of gratitude is a very powerful thing.
  • Learning new skills. Rehabilitation and recovery change how time is spent, offering the opportunity to learn new skills, try new hobbies, and do new activities. In these times, you form bonds out of mutual excitement and curiosity.
  • Revealing commonalities. Community shows you that you are not alone, which can prove to be of great value if you are struggling or need an understanding ear to listen.
  • Offering examples of successful recovery. Mentors, sober counselors, and sponsors can give you hope when you have none of your own. Their success stories may be what you need to get through a rough patch.
  • Holding you accountable. Accountability to yourself and others may be something you did not worry about in active addiction. It also may be something some feel is a burden, but being accountable builds trust, character, and confidence as you walk through life.

Find Your Power in Sobriety

Fresh Start of California offers a different path to our patients than the one they know. Our Orange County detox and recovery teams provide individual and group therapies, counseling, inpatient and outpatient rehabilitation that can build a strong foundation for a sober life. We are here to support you in becoming the best version of yourself. One that is clear-minded, confident in decisions, and able to do anything that you put your mind to.

Take the first step in recovery. Call the Orange County recovery specialists at Fresh Start of California now.

 

The Power of Silence: Taking Time to Listen and Support

/in /by

Silence as a Form of Recovery Support: Listen and Learn

Communication is a two-way street but it is not uncommon for an addict to get nothing from those around them but being talked down to, yelled at, or told what they are doing wrong. As a supportive loved one, family member, or friend, we must listen, we must pause and offer our loved one the respectful gift of silence. We must place on-hold our need to fill the void of sound and allow the addict to express their needs first. Taking time to listen gives our loved ones a chance to release what is within, setting aside the judgment and allowing for vulnerability.

If your loved one needs support, or you are personally struggling with active addiction, the Orange County detox and rehabilitation specialists at Fresh Start of California can help. Call our team today for the support you need.

How Silence Can Help in Recovery

There are many ways in which sound can impact our wellbeing. Constant talking, noise, or sound can negatively impact our mental and emotional health. Contrastingly, quiet environments improve health and wellbeing, reduce the use of mind-altering drugs, and can help an addict find the space to share.

Other ways that sound can be involved in recovery support include: 

  • Noises can be triggering, negatively or positively. Sounds stick with you, such as guitar melodies, loud voices, screeching vehicles, or arguments. Silence and supportive listening help to reset the mind and create an opportunity for your loved one to create positive memories, associated with the sounds of their choice.
  • Release auditory stressors that may feel like torture for a recovering addict. Keep in mind that you do not know all of what your loved one has experienced in his or her addiction. Listen to them for cues to what kinds of conversations are comfortable and less stressful.
  • Silent presence may be exactly what your recovering loved one needs. Whether when we are sick or are working through difficult emotional or mental times, a loved one offering quiet presence is comforting. It may all our loved one needs to feel safe and to relax.
  • Silence promotes sleep. Sleep that is interrupted by noises or that is not in silence may be restless, which is not as healing. Being available, but leaving space for silence, is a wonderful way to support your recovering loved one.

Silence in a Medical Setting: Your Support at Fresh Start of California

At Fresh Start of California, it is our job to offer support in all aspects of detox and recovery. We are here to act as your counselors, your nurses, and doctors, and equally importantly, to hold space in silence for you. Our detox and recovery professionals understand the importance of silence in the medical setting as it allows our patients to express what they are feeling, physically, mentally, or emotionally. We also can implement and demonstrate silence through silent meditation or holding space for others in silence during a group setting.

For detox and rehabilitation options in Orange County, contact the team at Fresh Start of California. We are here to answer your call 24/7.

The Empowerment of Bringing in the New Year Sober

/in /by

We often celebrate the New Year as a chance to start fresh, a chance for resolutions, and a way to remember the positive things throughout the year. When you are in recovery, there is so much to celebrate. You are given a new chance at life and a new outlook through sober, healthy eyes. At Fresh Start of California, the patients in our Orange County detox and rehabilitation center are provided the tools and life skills to succeed in sober living. We understand that it may take some time to find happiness being sober, but we are hopeful and encouraging to all that there is so much to be joyful about.

Celebrate sobriety while enjoying the start of a new year by remembering the empowerment that sobriety offers. If you need help with your recovery journey, contact the Orange County detox and rehabilitation professionals at Fresh Start of California. We are here 24/7.

Call Fresh Start of California now.

7 Reasons to Feel Empowered for New Years

If you are feeling down or your confidence in sobriety is lacking, take a moment to take stock of all of the reasons to be proud. Let our list below be your starting point and remember that you have plenty of reasons to celebrate and share your journey this New Years’.

  1. You are in control. Sobriety gives you the gift of control over your life. You are no longer under the control of a substance so you can now be the one who determines your responsibilities, goals, and consequences.
  2. You have choices. You can choose where, how, when, and with whom you celebrate New Year’s Eve and the rest of your life. You are in charge of your life now, no one and nothing else.
  3. Your body has changed. Sobriety will help improve your health, your looks, and your emotional and mental state. Sobriety brings you back to life, emotionally, mentally, and physically, all the way to a cellular level inside of your body. It eliminates substance-related bloating, improves the shine of your hair, decreases body fat from empty calories in alcoholic drinks, and improves your body weight ratio of fat to muscle.
  4. You have opportunities. Sobriety opens up doors that would otherwise be closed while in addiction. Whether you want to go back to school, start a passion project, start new relationships, or get a new job, sobriety is key to the success of your endeavors.
  5. You can experience emotions. Much of what we learn in recovery is the spirit of humility and gratitude. Humility and gratitude are empowering because they give you a completely different perspective than one of being guarded and defensive. Find power in vulnerability.
  6. You are the main character. You are rewriting your life story starting with recovery and you are the new main character. In your old life, your substance was the main character, but this is no longer the case.
  7. You have new energy. You can walk into a room with confidence, exuding the energy that you know is positive, sober, and valuable. Be secure and confident that you can experience life with curiosity and excitement, giving your energy to what you choose.

The Empowerment of Freedom

The biggest thing to celebrate this New Years’ is the empowerment of freedom from the prison of addiction. Addiction robs you of opportunity, freedom of choice, and the health that comes with sobriety. You have so much to live for, so why not take advantage of the opportunity to celebrate your sober life on New Year’s Eve? Give yourself the credit you deserve. Whether you just started your sober journey or have years under your belt, find a reason to feel powerful today knowing you took back control from drugs and alcohol.

Call on the recovery professionals at Fresh Start of California for detox and rehabilitation options in Orange County if you need support in sobriety. You are not alone. Contact our team today and get started.

8 Tips for Mental Preparation to Stay Sober for the Holidays

/in /by

Be Ready for Sober Holidays with Tips from Fresh Start of California

Whether you are fresh out of detox and rehabilitation or have several years under your belt, the holidays can be a difficult time for a recovering addict. It’s crucial to be prepared, both mentally and emotionally so that the feelings and activities that come with the holidays do not catch you off guard. Your sobriety should be your biggest priority as you attend family gatherings and holiday events, and it helps to be reminded of how to mentally prepare.

If you are ready to leap sobriety this holiday season, the team at Fresh Start of California can help. Our Orange County detox and rehabilitation professionals will work with you to provide tools and teach the skills that will help you reenter society in sobriety.

Contact Fresh Start of California to ask for help. We are here 24/7 to take your call.

8 Tips to Tackle the Holidays

Feel confident in your sobriety and be prepared for anything that crosses your path during the holidays using the tips below.

  1. Know your triggers. Consider making a list of your known triggers and ways to handle them. Think of the triggers that may be involved with the holidays, family interactions, and gatherings and how you can avoid or walk away from them. Triggers are people, events, objects, or thoughts that can cause a memory of using or coping through use. These are quite often part of the holidays as trauma in our youth may revisit us during family time.
  2. Be informed. Knowing what is coming concerning activities, get-togethers, and holiday obligations can help you mentally prepare. Ask questions about who is going to attend, what will be served, and what expectations will be placed upon you can inform your decisions about your involvement. Do not say yes if you believe that something is going to threaten your sobriety.
  3. Plan your good-byes. Plan for your escape if things get out-of-hand or too rowdy. Let the host know that if you leave early, it is to protect your sobriety, and have a “sober buddy” to back you up if needed. Supportive family and friends can help field questions as to why you had to leave.
  4. Know the science. If you face temptation or triggers and do not want to leave (avoid) due to their existence, know that you can make it through using this research-based concept: Cravings will typically subside or lose their power after 10 minutes. Use these challenges to evaluate your triggers and the emotions attached to them. The more you investigate the emotions, the less power you give the trigger.
  5. Stress less. Use stress relief techniques so that you can enjoy your holiday with a clear, calm mind. Try meditation, journaling, walks, yoga, mind games (memory games, crosswords, math games), or use your smartphone to listen to calming meditations or podcasts.
  6. Set sober dates. Plan to attend meetings either alone or with a sober partner. Know where the local meetings are if you are away from home and hold yourself accountable by planning to go with someone. You can even make phone dates or Zoom dates if in-person meetings are unavailable.
  7. Seek professional help. It is never wrong to seek help from those who know more than you or from those who are educated and experienced in helping people. Seek professional help if the holidays are an especially difficult time for you. Contact the local addiction and recovery facilities, place a phone call to your doctor to find a therapist, or try online or phone therapy services.
  8. Be honest. Tell your supportive family members and friends about how you are feeling. Be vocal about your concerns and triggers so that they can be there to help you. Expressing yourself to those who care is highly beneficial in creating a safe and healthy environment, for the holidays and your future.

Mental Preparation is Your Power Move this Holiday Season

Your power lies in the tools that are in your metaphorical tool belt. The things that you learn and the changes you make during recovery give you strength and power that can move mountains. Sobriety is something that you can be proud of, and even when the holidays pose a threat, mentally preparing will keep the ball in your court. Use the tips above, and don’t be ashamed to ask for back up or help, and you’ll have an enjoyable and memorable holiday season.

Let the Orange County team of recovery experts at Fresh Start of California give you the support you need to be successful in sobriety. We are here to walk with you through detox and rehabilitation. Contact us today.

Gratitude and Sobriety Go Hand in Hand

/in /by

Highs and Lows: Learning Gratitude

It is said that those who have survived addiction know about the lowest of the lows so much more than those who have not battled addiction. With that propensity of feeling such strong emotion, which often is one of the reasons for addiction, comes the ability to feel strong gratitude. The strength that it takes to survive addiction, to find the conviction to stick to recovery, and to live in sobriety, gives us the strength to see life for what it is. This process, and the process of taking inventory, help us to remember the gratitude in sobriety.

At Fresh Start of California, we give you the tools to start fresh in a life of sobriety. One of these tools is learning how to practice gratitude. Our Orange County detox and recovery specialists are here to offer you support, tools, and a holistic approach to recovery.

Contact our team today if you need drug or alcohol rehabilitation in Orange County. We are here to answer your call 24/7.

Humility and Gratitude in Recovery

A huge part of recovery and sobriety is humility- the act of humility and the understanding of humility. Humility, or being humble, goes along with the knowledge that we are not the center of the universe. Truly understanding that we are not entitled and that we are capable of having a negative (or positive) effect on others, is understanding that we are human.

Through this understanding we find gratefulness. All things positive in our lives are worth being grateful for. This is true especially in sobriety because we often are coming from a place of complete destitution, or complete surrender, and as sobriety fills the holes in life, it brings with it reasons for thankfulness. Sobriety gives us everything we have, from stability and “normalcy” to the things we own, new relationships, and employment.

Gratitude can help us get through hard times in sobriety. It can change our attitude and behavior, improving our outlook on the present and the future. We can even practice gratitude for surviving our time in addiction and for the chance to live in sobriety. Practicing gratitude for what we have allows more positivity to come our way. Gratitude for what you have releases the unhappiness the comes from focusing on what we don’t have and releases resentment for what you have but don’t want.

Creating an Attitude of Gratitude

Living in sobriety and gratitude can take practice. There are several ways to cultivate gratitude in your heart and life. Use our tips below to get started.

  • Start your day by thinking of 3 things to be grateful for before you get out of bed.
  • Keep a gratitude journal and try to fill one page at the end of each day with positive thoughts and things you are grateful for.
  • Send thank-you letters via snail-mail or email to friends, family, or associates.
  • Look around when you are in nature and say a mental “thank you” for the beautiful things you see.
  • Practice speaking about things, experiences, or events that you are excited and grateful for rather than sharing negativity.
  • Give compliments freely and happily, tell someone you love their shirt, tell someone they did a good job.
  • If you enjoy spending time practicing self-care, remember to do so with mindfulness and gratitude, even if it is just giving thanks for the hot water in your shower, or the taste of toothpaste.

Find a New Life with Fresh Start of California

Fresh Start of California offers residential and outpatient detox and rehabilitation for our patients. We understand that everyone has unique needs and individual treatments that will best provide the framework for recovery. Let us walk with you into your new life, into a mindset of gratitude in sobriety. We are here for you.

Contact Fresh Start of California for detox and rehabilitation treatment in Orange County.

How to Throw an Awesome Sober Halloween Party

/in /by

The Holiday Season and Living in Sobriety

Halloween often signifies the start of the holiday season. In Orange County and all of Southern California, it is also the start of cooler weather, the beginning of many gatherings with family and friends. As the kick-off for the “party season” Halloween might be your first sober event. Sobriety does not mean that you can no longer have fun. With tips from our team at Fresh Start of California, you can plan a fun, memorable, and sober Halloween party.

If you are battling addiction and are ready to start a new chapter, Fresh Start of California offers detox, inpatient, and outpatient recovery solutions in Orange County. We can work with you to move through the phases of detox and rehabilitation so that you can have confidence in sobriety. Let our team be your support system and jump into this holiday season with a renewed excitement for life.

Contact Fresh Start of California today.

8 Ideas for Sober Halloween Fun

If you are ready to throw an awesome party but are wondering how to make it great without alcohol, have no fear. We compiled tips and ideas to help your party be a hit, without the need for intoxication. Remember the joy of Halloween as a child, the excitement, and the playfulness.

With that spirit in mind, read the tips and ideas below to make your party a blast.

  1. Dress up. Be sure to let your guests know that costumes are key! You can choose a theme for the party or encourage your guests to get creative. Spend the money you would have spent on stocking the bar to create an epic costume. Need some ideas for themes? Try apocalyptic or end of the world, space life, animals, or Vegas themes so that the costumes can be cohesive.
  2. Create designated and different areas of interest. Have food and beverages in one space, with room to sit or stop and chat, designate an area for dancing with access to music choices, maybe supply games or activities in one room, or even a movie room with comfortable cushions and low lighting.
  3. Play a scary movie or humorous Halloween classic. Consider projecting a movie onto the side of your house, a wall inside, or buy a screen to play the movie outside. Horror loving friends will have something to discuss. It can serve as a conversation starter about favorite movies or a way to take a break from dancing.
  4. Have plenty to eat and drink. Build a menu of “mocktails” that are Halloween themed, buy pre-made non-alcoholic drinks, or supply the regular variety of water, juice, and sodas.
  5. Play games and even plan some “tricks.” Halloween allows us to bring out our playful side, so why not plant some tricks for your guests, jump scares with “ghosts” behind doors, or games that get people to mingle and start loosening up.
  6. Make memories and capture them. Place Polaroid cameras around the room and let guests take photos to pin to a photo board or bring home. Set up a photo booth. Start traditions with your sober friends that you can carry on for future events and parties. If you don’t have access to Polaroids, consider having your home photo printer available for you to take a few minutes at the end of the night to print group photos for everyone to take home.
  7. Turn down the lights and turn up the music. Lower lights help people release the fear of everyone watching them, so they can get loose and get down on the dancefloor. Lower lighting, colored lights, or blacklights, will help people feel comfortable dancing, and can help counteract the thought that often accompanies nights of the past that, “I dance better when I’ve had a few drinks.”
  8. Carve pumpkins. Pick up pumpkins for your guests or ask them to bring their own for carving. Provide stencils, tools, and space to carve pumpkins. Focusing on a task and expressing individual ideas while carving will allow guests to talk with people they may not have before. Taking the focus off of the conversation and shifting it onto a task allows guards to lower and nerves to physically release through the physical task.

Halloween Fun That You Remember

One of the biggest advantages of sobriety is that you will remember the memories that you make. No more waking up with foggy ideas of the night before, no more missed connections because you were too intoxicated to pay attention. Whether you are newly sober or have years of sobriety under your belt, fostering friendships and relationships with other sober people is advantageous. You have a common goal, a common thread, that makes it okay to enjoy yourselves without the pressure to include substances. A sober Halloween party is just the start of the holiday season’s activities that you can cherish rather than vaguely remember.

Are you ready to have a fresh view on life? Contact the Orange County detox and rehab team at Fresh Start of California to learn how we can help you fight addiction and get your life back.

 

Red Ribbon Week: October 23-31

/in /by

The Origins of Red Ribbon Week

Red Ribbon Week is the week of recognition and advocacy for the fight against drugs and addiction. It began in 1985, started after the death of DEA Special Agent Enrique “Kiki” Camarena. Special Agent Camarena was brutally tortured and murdered by drug traffickers during an investigation in Mexico. This event and the start of Red Ribbon Week escalated as it got national recognition, and in 1988 the National Family Partnership (NFP) coordinate the official first National Red Ribbon Week. President Reagan and Nancy Reagan became national chairpersons for the campaign and the NFP continues to coordinate the program each year.

As Orange County’s resource and facility for rehabilitation and detox from drugs and alcohol, Fresh Start of California is a supportive and active participant in Red Ribbon Week. We are here to help addicts and their families fight against the drugs and alcohol that control their lives.

Contact the rehabilitation specialists at Fresh Start of California to start your path to recovery today.

The Nation’s Oldest Drug Awareness Program

As the longest-lasting and most wide-spread drug awareness program, Red Ribbon Week unites children and adults in a visible stand against drug use. The mission is to keep children drug-free, first and foremost, as well as profess a commitment to abstain from drug use.

Each year a contest is held to determine the upcoming year’s Red Ribbon Week theme. The 2020 theme for Red Ribbon Week, October 23rd-31st, is “Be happy. Be brave. Be drug-free.” This year’s theme was created by Tricia Nelson, of Locust Corner Elementary School in Cincinnati. Her theme embodies the idea of living a drug-free life that is happy, exciting, and fulfilling. Although this year’s event will be primarily virtual, wearing a red ribbon is still impactful.

Wearing a red ribbon represents the pledge to live drug-free and honors the sacrifice of those who lost their lives fighting against drugs and drug use. The National Family Partnership, as the backbone of Red Ribbon Week, promotes awareness, acts as advocates, and provides resources to those in need.

Join the Fight Against Drug Use

At Fresh Start of California, we instill hope in our patients and strive to help addicts get excited about life in sobriety. Our team of detox and rehabilitation professionals and support staff understand the struggles that coincide with addiction as well as the issues that create the need for drug use. We are here to help you get to the root of where the addiction started and can work with you to build a new foundation of sobriety.

For inbox or outpatient detox and rehabilitation options in Orange County, contact Fresh Start of California today. We are here for you.

How to Help a Loved One with Addiction

/in , , /by

Orange County Rehabilitation Specialists Provide Tips for Help

If your family member or loved one is suffering in the depth of addiction, it is critical to know the difference between control and pressure versus influence and support. Pressure, control, and change by force is not possible in addiction. Neither the addict nor the loved one is in control in this situation, the substance is truly the one in charge. We cannot force change or trick a loved one into quitting. A better, more effective approach is to offer support and influence via positive reinforcement, information on programs and support groups, and consistent boundaries.

The team of Orange County rehabilitation professionals at Fresh Start of California understands the mental and emotional toll that addiction takes on loved ones. We know that you need support and help as much as the addict. Our team is here as a resource to you and your loved one, and we can help you find a treatment program that will best fit your family member, spouse, or friend who needs professional help. Let our recovery team be the professional support that your loved one needs, so you can get some peace of mind.

Contact Fresh Start of California today to discuss treatment options in Orange County.

5 Ways to Help a Loved One with Addiction

You may think that helping a loved one with addiction involves offering money, housing, and entering into an “enabling” relationship, but that is not the case. There are very important ways to help your loved one without becoming codependent or enabling.

The top 5 ways to help your loved one suffering from addiction are:

  1. Be consistent. Consistent rules, expectations, promises, consequences, and boundaries will help your loved one feel safe and cared for. Also, consistency and rigid rules will help you not to enable.
  2. Be optimistic. Optimism, while being realistic, is important in maintaining sanity while dealing with the aftermath of binges, psychosis, withdrawals, and other negative aspects of using. Whether faith-based or fact-based, find something to keep thinking positive outside of the addiction relationship.
  3. Be encouraging. Use different types of encouragement from physical (hugs, physical presence) to emotional and mental encouragement. Verbally encouraging an addict when he or she is feeling down can make a difference, even if you don’t seem to get a reaction.
  4. Be educated. Inform yourself so that you know the truth about addiction, what it looks like, and how it affects users and their loved ones. Educate yourself on codependency and the signs of enabling so that you can be prepared and avoid making a situation worse.
  5. Be assertive. When addressing the issue, do not sugarcoat or tiptoe, be assertive and straightforward. Do not mask the effects of addiction from the addict. Ignoring the issue of addiction will not make it go away.

A bonus tip, that is equally important as all of the others, is to take care of yourself. Be sure to eat, drink water, and get adequate sleep while caring for and supporting an addicted loved one. It sounds cliché but practicing self-care is important when you are dealing with the stress, fear, and unknowns of dealing with addiction.

Addicts and Loved Ones Both Need Help

It is not uncommon for loved ones of addicts to need some sort of help themselves. Whether you require counseling, codependency therapy, or any other support, there is help out there. Our addiction and rehabilitation team at Orange County’s Fresh Start of California has access to excellent resources and recovery programs for you and your loved one. Let us help you make a difference in your loved one’s life.

Contact Fresh Start of California today to learn about detox and addiction recovery solutions.

Parents of Addicted Teens: Acceptance VS Condoning

/in /by

Parental Instinct and Using Emotion to Fuel Action

When we find out our child is using or has fallen into the trouble of addiction, our initial reaction may be disgust, resistance, anger, guilt, and stress. Unfortunately, these reactions are not going to help. It is best to channel any emotions into action and refrain from trying to understand cause and effect. Trying to understand the “why” from the get-go can make us miss chances for intervention.

With the knowledge that our child needs help, we must understand the difference between acceptance and condoning the drug or alcohol abuse. Acceptance is recognizing the reality of the situation without attempting to protest it or change it while condoning is allowing behavior that is morally wrong or offensive to continue despite its ramifications.

At Fresh Start of California, we understand the difficult place that a child’s addiction can put a parent in. We know how precarious it is to make the right choices and worry about the wrong ones. Let us help you and your child have a fighting chance against addiction.

Contact the Orange County detox and rehabilitation specialists at Fresh Start of California for addiction recovery options and where to start. Call our team today.

What Does Acceptance Look Like?

Acceptance may look like seeking help, offering ways to avoid use, arranging counseling, or intervention. There are many ways to work with your child to fight against the power of addiction including:

  • Finding motivation for abstaining from the use
  • Finding ways to limit peer pressure in a manner that supports recovery
  • Seeking an understanding of motives for use, such as: is it for fun? For acceptance by peers? Or self-medication for mental or emotional distress?
  • Offer an incentivized challenge for quitting, or for abstaining for a certain period.
  • Set house rules and guidelines with consequences with the knowledge that the user may continue.

Acceptance may look different for every family, but the key is to have an understanding with your teen that you are on their side and that you are going to help them through the path of recovery.

What Does Condoning Look Like?

Condoning the behavior of an addict, even your child, is often the result of a few different factors: a parent ‘s drug or alcohol abuse or addiction, the desire to be friends more than a parent figure, the notion that the home is a safe space for experimentation. Condoning behavior may look like:

  • Using drugs or drinking with your teen
  • Allowing your teen to use or drink at your house
  • Supplying alcohol or drugs to your teen or teen’s friends
  • Raising your child around drug or alcohol use
  • Not being conscious of censoring your drug or alcohol use

It is important to understand the implications of condoning the addictive behavior of a teen user. Our teens deserve a fighting chance at life after recovery.

A Fighting Chance with Fresh Start of California

Our Orange County team of detox and recovery professionals can help you connect with the resources you need to get your child through. Recovery and abstaining from drug or alcohol use may require different commitments of a teen than an adult. Our specialists understand that as a parent, you will need help navigating the rehabilitation process alongside your team. Let the experts at Fresh Start of California help you when the ones you love most are in trouble.

Contact Fresh Start of California in Orange County today.

Why Anger Management and Rehab Go Hand in Hand

/in , /by

Childhood Experience and Anger Management

Anger management issues are often closely connected to substance abuse, especially when an addict was exposed to anger, violence, and trauma as a child. Children of violent adults frequently become angry adults themselves and may be predisposed to abuse drugs or alcohol. Experiencing or witnessing violence and trauma at a young age can cause developmental delays, issues with emotional maturity, and personality changes. If substance abuse is combined with anger and emotional management issues, it is clear that during recovery, these issues will need to be addressed.

The team at Fresh Start of California understands that your addiction is not the only thing that we can help with. We know that many substance abusers suffered childhood trauma and will need help with anger management, counseling, and other services during rehab. Let our Orange County addiction and recovery experts work with you at Fresh Start of California.

Call Fresh Start of California to start the road to recovery today.

The Start of Addiction: When Did Your Emotional Growth Stop?

It makes sense that many people who are battling addiction and anger began their addiction at a young age when the skills of adult anger management and emotional stability were not yet fully formed. Developmental disruptions are often based upon the age of the start of substance use. If a person were to begin using at age 12, for example, emotional understanding and how they handle anger would be based upon an age 12 understanding. The tools a person uses may only be accessible to the age at which they started using because memory, comprehension, and retention of tools once a substance is involved can be impaired.

Rehabilitation, recovery, and moving forward may involve anger management, life skills, and learning how to function past adolescent behavior in these cases. This is the first example where anger management and rehab go hand in hand. It is crucial for addicts who were exposed to childhood trauma and those who began their addiction at a young age to learn how to handle anger and other adult emotions.

Anger as Reaction: The Effects of Substances on How We Handle Life

Many substances cause reactions that differ from the way react when sober. Drugs and alcohol can trigger anger or alcohol can exaggerate strong emotions including anger. Although some drink or use to smooth their emotional response, thus self-medicating, it often has the opposite effect. In these cases, it creates a cycle of strong emotion-drinking or using-anger or strong emotion-using or drinking more, etc.

Not only do substances change our reactions, but they also diminish impulse control. They make the abuser care less about what their actions will cause, the consequences of their actions or words, and about the damage that their anger does. Unfortunately, people who struggle with anger management are more prone to substance abuse.

Anger Management Provides Tools for Recovery

Anger management in rehab provides the tools that recovering addicts need to move forward and interact in healthy ways. These classes can help recovery patients learn to recognize triggers and cope with them. They also teach people in recovery to take responsibility for their actions and repair relationships destroyed during addiction.

What can you expect in anger management?

  • You may talk about past experiences.
  • You will identify personal triggers.
  • You can learn healthy ways to manage anger.
  • You will share feelings.
  • You will learn to problem solve and learn productive anger management skills.
  • You will learn about passive-aggressive behavior and how to avoid it.
  • You will learn the difference between anger as an emotion and chronic anger as a personality trait.

Most of all, in anger management you will be given the tool to help prevent anger as a trigger for relapse. Preventing addictive behavior and substance abuse is a key component in relearning how to handle emotions.

The Truth of Anger Management and Rehab

People tend to turn to drugs or alcohol to cope with their feelings and avoid the discomfort of the unknown. This is especially true of negative emotions like sadness, pain, and anger. Unfortunately, the negative emotions and memories attached to them are only temporarily displaced by the substance. These will continue to build and grow in the shadows of addiction until they are faced with sobriety. Anger management as a supplement to rehabilitation is critical in moving forward and being able to work through the traumas of the past.

Anger management and rehab truly go hand in hand. At Fresh Start of California, we understand the importance of having an all-encompassing rehabilitation program. Let our Orange County addiction specialists help you find a program that works for you.

Contact Fresh Start of California to discuss treatment today.